Shadowed
by Gamillia
Summary: A mysterios new girl arrives with a strange background. Dib finds her to be normal compared to the remarks around her but he is about to discover something he would have never guessed she'd be....Chapter 5 finally up! Enjoy!
1. Thing in the Night

Shadowed  
  
  
  
Chapter 1-Thing in the Night  
  
  
  
Late Monday evening.  
  
Gir had just gotten home from a dance party as something glowing entered the  
  
atmosphere.  
  
It gave of a reddish energy.  
  
Gir looked closely to see a more human-like figure.  
  
It had long, black wings, a jagged, thin tail, and dark red glaring eyes.  
  
Whatever it was, it landed on the roof two doors down from Zim's house.  
  
Gir hurried over to greet the unknown creature,"Hiye!" Gir squeaked.  
  
The thing jumped from the rooftop and went towards Gir.  
  
"Want some of my freezie? It's Chocolate Bubblegum!", just as Gir lifted up the cup, Zim  
  
  
  
came out and started yelling,"GIR! GIR! Get away from that, that, THING!"  
  
Emidently the creature gave Zim an evil glance and flew off, disapearing into the night's  
  
sky.  
  
  
  
Zim ran over to Gir, grabbing him and leashing him, " Stay away from those horrible  
  
humans! Understand?"  
  
  
  
"Aww,but she's my friend." Gir complained.  
  
  
  
"No, Gir, not friend. Now promise you will NOT go near those, THINGS again." Zim  
  
opened the door and dragged Gir inside.  
  
"Okay-." Gir said, jumping onto the couch and snatching the remote from the arm rest.  
  
"I'm serious, Gir." Zim headed to his lab,"Don't go near it."  
  
Gir, as usual, ignored him and continued watching the Scary Monkey Show.  
  
The following day, Dib babbled on about his paranoid theories of Zim.  
  
Gaz, however, was not playing her Game Slave, but stamping a letter to the Skool board.  
  
She hit Dib with the letter, "Make yourself useful and go put this in the mailbox, NOW!"  
  
"But the post office doesn't open until 10:00!" Dib reminded.  
  
A blue truck passed by,"Look...there's the mailman. Go follow him."  
  
"But--"Dib started.  
  
"GO!"  
  
  
  
Dib did as he was told and Gaz happily walked to skool alone, laughing to herself and admitting in her head that the letter was a fake.  
  
Dib arrived at skool a little late and he ran throughout the hall to Ms.Bitters class.  
  
He looked back to see if anyone noticed and as he looked forward, he ran into a girl, knocking her over.  
  
  
  
"Oh, man! I'm sorry!"he helped her up,"I was just in a hurry to get to class and--" he stopped and looked at the girl. She had shoulder-length blonde hair with little red streaks and silvery eyes.  
  
The girl was about Dib's height and wore a similar trench coat only in red and had a black and gray 'X' shirt underneath it.  
  
She also had baggy black pants covering grayish-red shoes.  
  
"Are you new here? I mean, I just haven't seen you--What's your name?"  
  
The late bell rang and the kids who were eating breakfast in the cafeteria poured out almost knocking Dib down.  
  
Dib looked around for the strange girl, but he couldn't find her and figured he should get to class.  
  
  
  
He got there just in time and took his seat, taking out a few sheets of paper and begun drawing those little 'Zim Optopsi' pictures. In the corner of the picture, he started neglecting his Zim-hate drawing and started a little  
  
portrait of the girl.  
  
The door opened and in walked the girl from the hallway.  
  
"Class, this is Uko, another pitiful nothing to the student body." Ms.Bitters announced.  
  
The class stared at the girl.  
  
"You have one minute to say something and after that, I don't want to here another sound from you!" Ms.Bitters slithered to her desk.  
  
"Hi.Uh, that's right...my name's Uko and---" her eyes locked on Zim and she stopped for a few seconds studying the familiar face," ...and I'll be here the remainder of the year."  
  
"Take the nearest available seat!" the teacher ordered.  
  
Uko spotted the seat behind Dib and smiled to the class as she approached the seat.  
  
"Oooh, look at the two love birds! It's so romantic!" Sara gossiped.  
  
The class laughed, everyone but Zim, who was more confused than before.  
  
"Love birds?" Zim asked.  
  
Dib's face was flushed, until he looked back at Uko.  
  
She seemed completely calm, but stared strangely at the short green kid across the room.  
  
Dib was curious, but too embarrassed to ask anything for fear that Sara would start something again.  
  
The lunch bell rung and all of the children poured out of their classrooms heading to the cafeteria.  
  
  
  
Uko walked in front of Dib until he jumped out in front of her.  
  
"What do you know about Zim?" Dib demanded.  
  
"Zim?" Uko said confusedly.  
  
" The green kid! Tell me!"  
  
"What could you possibly want to know?"  
  
"EVERYTHING!" Dib yelled.  
  
" I've...I've only seen him once before." Uko continued down the hall, looking quite lost.  
  
"Where?"  
  
" He and that crazy little dog live two doors down from me."  
  
" NO! You're in danger!"  
  
Uko stopped and looked around, then to the paranoid-looking Dib "Are you feeling alright?"  
  
  
  
Dib didn't answer, so Uko continued walking away.  
  
Dib followed her.  
  
"Why won't you go away?Who are you anyway?  
  
"It's Dib." he sighed,"Look, Zim is an alien! He wants to destroy us all!"  
  
"An alien,eh?"  
  
  
  
"You think I'm crazy, don't you?"  
  
"No...well, not really."  
  
  
  
"Oh...Wait, why don't you think I've lost it?"  
  
"Do you want me to?"  
  
  
  
"NO! No..."then he stopped to think for a second...he could always use an ally and he hadn't had a true friend since, well, ever,--and Uko seemed like the perfect culprate,"Hey, Uko...would you ever consider helping me catch Zim and send him to the FBI through horrible tests?!"  
  
  
  
"Well, I..." Uko started.  
  
"And help me stop his plans of DOOM!"  
  
"Hold on a sec, plans of doom?"  
  
"Yeah...he wants to enslave the Earth and take us to our horrible fates!"  
  
"Uh--"  
  
  
  
"Look, I might not be able to stop him alone and, well, I could use some help."  
  
Uko looked away.  
  
She wasn't quite sure what to say, after all, for everything she knew, Dib could be some raving lunatic of a psycho.  
  
  
  
But he seemed so determined, Uko didn't want caught in a trap either, " Well, what about someone else? Won't anybody--"  
  
"No...they think that I'm crazy, but I know what I'm talking about. You gotta believe me!" Dib fell on his knees,"Please?"  
  
  
  
Uko stared at Dib for a few seconds, then forced herself to say," Okay."  
  
Dib sighed, "I knew you wouldn't--what?"  
  
"I said I'd help, if it means that much to you. I don't really want to be a slave anyway."  
  
Dib hopped up and hugged Uko,"Thank you!"  
  
Uko looked around once more, "Hey Dib? Where's the food place? I'm starving."  
  
"This way..." Dib escorted.  
  
  
  
As they walked through the hall and into the line of hungry children, impatiently awaiting for their.  
  
  
  
lunches, Dib raved on about Zim and for once in his entire life, he actually had an audience who was just as interested in the sort of thing he was. "So, Uko, tell me about yourself." Dib asked.  
  
"Tell you what, exactly?"  
  
  
  
"Oh, uh, your interests and stuff.Where are you from?"  
  
"Let's see, well I came from a deserted kind of small town and I like to write and draw and, uh, oh and food, and video games and I really like aliens."  
  
"Video games, eh? I should introduce you to my sister, she obsessed with that little game slave thing."  
  
  
  
" Version one or two?"  
  
  
  
"I don't know..."  
  
  
  
"Well, what about you? What kind of stuff do you like?"  
  
"Anything paranormal I guess. It's kind of like a hobby of mine. I sound like a dork, don't I?"  
  
  
  
Uko giggled,"Not much more of a dork than I am."  
  
After they got their food, Dib led Uko to the the usual table where Gaz quietly played her game.  
  
  
  
"Uko, this is my sister, Gaz...." Dib announced.  
  
"Hi!" Uko said cheerfully.  
  
  
  
"...Gaz this is Uko."  
  
  
  
"Hi." Gaz replied, almost hypnotized by the power of the games.  
  
Uko sat between the two.  
  
Gaz stayed silent, as Dib asked Uko questions.  
  
Zim watched from a far.  
  
He was worried that Dib had found help,...help that could, uh, actually help!  
  
'That horrible earth creature,' Zim thought,' With that hideous human...why does she look so familiar?' he glanced over at Gaz, who was near knocking Dib out,'Hmmm, the other earth thing seems to dislike the two so-called lovebirds. Eeewww, love...such a deceiving  
  
word...but maybe,...yes, of course! Why didn't I see it before? The answer to all of my  
  
pesky little Dib problems was right there in front of me! It's in that scary little sister of  
  
his! I befriend the human girl, I get rid of Dib then kill of his sister and that Uko,thing,  
  
then, I rule the world! Why am I so amazing?'  
  
After the bell rang and the kids ran out of the skool and Dib and Uko went ahead of Gaz, of course, she didn't mind.  
  
  
  
In fact, she was hoping they'd do that more often.  
  
Zim quietly followed her a distance away, studying her.  
  
At his base, Gir was rolling around on the floor singing some kind of strange song.  
  
Zim came in and went straight to his lab.  
  
Gir followed.  
  
  
  
Zim went to his console and typed out the word LOVE in his search engine, "TODAY IS THE BEGINING OF THE END!" Zim yelled as he pressed the enter key.  
  
A long list of sites popped up and Zim began evilly laughing.  
  
Gir squealed and ran around in circles.  
  
"Now Dib, prepare to meet your ultimate competitor, your own sister!"  
  
" I think I'm gonna be sick!" Girl hurled on one of the hardware systems.  
  
Wednesday-lunch.  
  
  
  
Upon sat with Dib and Gas again, since Dib insisted," So, I was thinking we could break into Zima's house this weekend and take all kinds of pictures and send them in and--"  
  
"And wait for them to never reply. I don't see why you waste your time trying to catch Zim, Dib. I don't think he's an alien and neither will anyone else, not even WITH proof." Gaz cut in.  
  
  
  
She always had some sort of plan to degrade Dib's discoveries.  
  
"You'll see." Dib said.  
  
After class, Dib and Uko ran off ahead, thanks for Gaz.  
  
Zim ran up to Gaz and simply said,"Hello,Gaz."  
  
"What do YOU want?" she snapped.  
  
"I was ,uh, just saying hi...is it illegal or something?"  
  
Gaz growled and tried to walk ahead.  
  
Zim followed,"So, where are you headed?"  
  
"Where do you think?"  
  
Zim shrugged,"How should I know? You rarely ever speak."  
  
"You don't know that."  
  
  
  
"Okay then, so are you doing anything this weekend?"  
  
"Other than raining misery upon my deluded brother's soul,no."  
  
"Then do you want to go see a mo-vie?" Zim asked, without any idea what a movie was.  
  
"No."  
  
  
  
"Why?'  
  
  
  
"Don't you have better things to do than bug me about your stupid dating issues? It isn't my fault I was your last choice!"  
  
"What?"Zim then thought 'Why is she so stubborn? I can't give up...must conquer earth. Let's see, think psychology, where would a scary person like Gaz go? A haunted house?  
  
A Halloween carnival? On a killing spree?' he glanced down at her Game slave,'the  
  
arcade!'  
  
  
  
"Well, what about the arcade?"  
  
Gaz glanced up at him and felt like Zim was almost reading her mind,...either that or  
  
stalking her since she always would go to the arcade an Saturdays.  
  
And since there would be a very strong chance that if she said no that Zim would show up there anyway.  
  
  
  
"Fine,then." Gaz said firmly.  
  
"Excellent, meet me Saturday around, oh say, noon?"  
  
"Whatever."  
  
  
  
"Can I walk you home?"  
  
  
  
Gaz stopped at a darkly painted house, "This is it."  
  
"Of course. Well then, see you tomorrow?"  
  
Gaz nodded and went inside.  
  
  
  
The idea of her actually dating the green kid was near repulsive to her.  
  
But she figured with some fast talking and playing as many games as possible that she could ignore Zim.  
  
  
  
What gaming skills could he possibly possess?  
  
Saturday.  
  
  
  
Gaz met Zim as promised.  
  
  
  
They didn't really talk much and Zim was begining to think that this plan would become another failure.  
  
  
  
That is, until he caught Gaz's attention.  
  
He began playing some aviation game which, with all of his experience piloting the voot runner, was really easy.  
  
  
  
"Hey, you're pretty good!" Gaz pointed out.  
  
"Really? I haven't even played a game like this before."  
  
Gaz watched as Zim entered his name into the really high score,"You almost tripled my score."  
  
  
  
"Is that bad?"  
  
  
  
"No!"  
  
  
  
"Oh, uh, well then...does this mean I rule all?"  
  
"No."  
  
  
  
"Am I close?"  
  
  
  
"Why-well, I don't know."  
  
  
  
From that point Gaz started to play against Zim.  
  
  
  
Gaz couldn't win, but she did really well.  
  
Zim looked over at Gaz.  
  
  
  
She looked like she was concentrating hard.  
  
Something came over him as he stared at her.  
  
The system started playing the victory music and Zim looked over to see that he had lost.  
  
"Finally." Gaz entered her name in.  
  
"Yeah, uh," Zim said blankly, still staring at Gaz.  
  
He shook his head and followed Gaz to the next game.  
  
Somewhere around seven o' clock, Gaz and Zim left the arcade.  
  
He offered to walk her home and even though she didn't really want him to, she let him anyway.  
  
  
  
When the two reached Gaz's house, Zim asked,"So, uh, what are you doing next weekend?"  
  
  
  
"I'm busy."  
  
  
  
"We could go to,eh, Bloaties?"  
  
"I'm busy."  
  
  
  
"Okay then, I'll see you tomorrow maybe?"  
  
"Maybe."  
  
  
  
Zim threw her a quick smile,then began to walk home.  
  
Gaz looked back at him,"Hey!"  
  
Zim looked back.  
  
  
  
"Friday at 7?"  
  
  
  
Zim walked over to her and hugged her slightly," Very well then."  
  
He walked home.  
  
  
  
Gaz watched him from the sidewalk as her vanished into the distance.  
  
She went inside.  
  
  
  
Dib and Uko were sitting on the couch.  
  
Dib had brought out all of his findings on Zim.  
  
"Oooh! What's this?" Uko pointed to a little briefcase.  
  
Dib opened the case,"It's a hologram of Zim as an alien. I made it on my computer."  
  
"Ooooh!!!"  
  
  
  
"Yeah, the graphics aren't really great, but it makes a pretty good presentation."  
  
Gaz growled and walked upstairs.  
  
Zim had made it home with the thought of Gaz looming in his mind.  
  
He tried to push it away with the thought of being lord of all humans, but he still couldn't ignore the idea of Gaz and him.  
  
Zim just gave himself the idea that it was from all of that research.  
  
He believed he was only being delusional.  
  
Zim went inside and fell asleep on the couch, dreaming of conquering the Earth. 


	2. Escape

Shadowed  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 2-Escape  
  
  
  
Zim woke up to the sound of the phone ring.  
  
"W-what is it?", Zim asked.  
  
"You still asleep?" It was Gaz.  
  
"Wha-? No, no."  
  
"Anyway, I have to go my dad's main work station. It's at least a two-hour ride from here and I have to take  
  
the subway. I was just wondering if you wanted to come with me."  
  
  
  
"Like a date?" Zim asked.  
  
"No,well, not really. I was only wondering if you wanted to come."  
  
  
  
Zim sighed. This could possibly be his second chance at winning her over then enslaving her.  
  
"Okay then. Can I call it a date?"  
  
"Ye-ah, uh, sure. I'll be over in a few minutes so,"  
  
  
  
"All right, good bye, Gaz" he hung up the phone and started laughing again.  
  
  
  
Gir followed in the laughing.  
  
Gaz arrived about 10 minutes after.  
  
Zim opened the door and Gaz emmidently pulled him outside, "C'mon, we'll be late!"  
  
Most of the way they walked and Gaz kept dragging Zim behind her.  
  
  
  
They got to the subway and stepped onto the long freight train.  
  
  
  
Zim clenched his seat as the train began to move.  
  
  
  
He had never been on such a thing and it was dark inside, which made Zim nervous.  
  
He looked out the window to see the blackish bricks pass by.  
  
  
  
He looked over at Gaz who was sketching something.  
  
  
  
Zim couldn't quite tell what it was since Gaz was practically covering it up.  
  
But when Zim got a look at the picture, he saw that it was him and Gaz with little black and red hearts all  
  
around it.  
  
  
  
Zim grinned evilly. He thought he had finally won over Gaz.  
  
  
  
Dib was woken up in shock.  
  
He was supposed to go with Gaz to their Dad's work place.  
  
  
  
He ran downstairs and looked around.  
  
Gaz's jacket was gone.  
  
Dib hurried and got dressed then called Uko to come over.  
  
  
  
When she arrived, Dib pulled her inside and started questioning her, "Have you seen Gaz? I mean I woke  
  
up and she wasn't here and I looked around and we're supposed to go and see dad and her jacket's gone and  
  
someone could kidnap her or try to kill her and--"  
  
"DIB!.....Okay, I get it!" Uko yelled.  
  
"NO! Gaz is out there all alone in the cold-hearted world with those murderous people!"  
  
"Dib, chill, alright? Gaz isn't alone." Uko said.  
  
  
  
"What?" Dib stared at her.  
  
"Yeah, I saw her this morning. She and Zim headed out to the city about 2 hours ago." Uko explained.  
  
Dib's jaw dropped "WHAT!? Gaz? And....ZIM?!"  
  
"That's what I said! Is that some sort of problem? At least she isn't alone."  
  
Dib sat down, "Gaz would be safer going by herself. Zim'll kill her and slice her in to pieces and then toss  
  
the remains into space. We gotta find her!"  
  
Uko rolled her eyes, "Dib, stop being so paranoid. Gaz is fine. Zim wouldn't hurt her."  
  
Dib got up again, "How do you know?"  
  
"I, uh, sort of overheard Zim talking to Gaz a few days ago. He was asking her out and stuff."  
  
"And...stuff?"  
  
"Yeah. And the night before he was talking to that dog about her, but I couldn't understand what he was  
  
  
  
saying."  
  
"And you kept this from me?!" Dib yelled.  
  
"Well, what was I suppose to say? - Oh hey Dib, I just aced a math test and guess what? Your worst enemy  
  
just asked you sister out and I'm having a bar-b-que this weekend, do you like carnival tents and clown  
  
balloons?"  
  
  
  
"You could have just-- wait...your having a cook out this weekend?"  
  
  
  
"Next weekend."  
  
Dib sighed, "I-I just don't know, Uko. You can't trust Zim by what he says or he would have taken over the  
  
planet by now."  
  
  
  
Uko put her hand on his shoulder, "I'm sure Gaz is perfectly safe. If Zim would try to hurt her anyway, Gaz  
  
would probably beat him to a bloody pulp."  
  
"Maybe." Dib sat down on the couch.  
  
"I bet my life on it. In a few hours, Gaz'll come through that door and throw something at you, then you'll  
  
feel all better! Unless you get all bruised or something. Then you'll feel better, on the inside, just not on the  
  
outside.....does that make any sense?"  
  
Dib nodded.  
  
"Trust me on this.....but if Zim's away, then who's at his house on guard?"  
  
  
  
"Those gnomes in the front yard and giant claws inside."  
  
  
  
"Well, who's operating them?"  
  
"The computer system."  
  
Uko growled, "Then let's go blow it up!"  
  
She grabbed Dib and pushed him out the door.  
  
Zim had fallen asleep until the train made a dead stop.  
  
  
  
Gaz hit Zim with her notebook, awaking him.  
  
"Get up, we're here."  
  
She dragged him out of the subway.  
  
Zim, still half-asleep, looked around.  
  
The buildings were much taller than the ones close to home.  
  
  
  
"This way." Gaz pulled his arm.  
  
Zim looked at all of the humans who appeared to stop and stare.  
  
  
  
He checked to make sure his wig was still on and that his lenses were still in place, and they were-but as we  
  
know, Zim is paranoid.  
  
They finally arrived at the station after about a half-an-hour walking.  
  
  
  
They went through the staff entrance and into the "Lab of Subatomic Particles."  
  
"Dad!" Gaz yelled.  
  
Professor Membrane approached the two, "Where's your brother?"  
  
  
  
"He said he had to go find big foot or something, so I brought Zim."  
  
  
  
"Ah, the foreign child!" Professor Membrane said.  
  
  
  
"Hello." Zim replied.  
  
"Well, if your brother wants to play detective, that's his fault."  
  
  
  
"Why'd you call us down here twenty-seven miles from home anyway?" Gaz hoped up on a counter-top.  
  
"Here," the professor pulled an envelope out of his lab coat, "I need you to deliver this for me."  
  
Gaz took the letter, "To Mr. Poopdog?"  
  
"It's top secret, so I'm trusting you to deliver it. I'd do it myself, but I've got a disease to destroy in less than  
  
an hour, so have fun kids and I'll be home on Wednesday."  
  
  
  
Gaz looked at the letter, then tossed it to Zim, "Hold on to that, and DON'T LOSE IT."  
  
As Gaz walked off, Zim hid the envelope in his backpack then followed Gaz to the exit.  
  
They took a cab to an old runned down building.  
  
Bricks were laying in the front and it had weeds growing left and right.  
  
  
  
You could here babies crying and cats and dogs fighting, one or the other getting their ear bitten off.  
  
"Okay, give me the letter so I can go home." Gaz asked.  
  
  
  
Zim tried to open his backpack and get the letter without needing to use the robot legs.  
  
There was some kind of malfunction, "Um, let me get it. I'll be right back."  
  
Zim ran behind the house where he wouldn't be seen and took his backpack off.  
  
He pulled a screwdriver out and attempted fixing the backpack.  
  
  
  
He put the backpack on.  
  
Gaz impatiently growled on the doorstep, then figured Zim had gotten eaten by something and went to go  
  
see.  
  
  
  
Just as she came around the corner, Zim's robot legs retracted.  
  
  
  
"What was that?!" Gaz asked.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Wh-what's what?" Zim questioned nervously.  
  
"That, that...THING that came out of your back!"  
  
  
  
  
  
"Wh-what thing?" a trickle of sweat rolled down his forehead, "Maybe the heat is making you delusional."  
  
"Zim, it's 50 degrees and the sun isn't even out! And I'm not being delusional! What was it? Some kind of  
  
hideous deformation?"  
  
"Yes, a d-deformation." Zim gulped.  
  
"Oooh! Can I see?"  
  
"I'm, eh, I-I got the letter." Zim handed her the envelope.  
  
  
  
"It's about time. Let's just deliver the thing and get out of here."  
  
  
  
Zim nodded, looking like he was about to pass out.  
  
  
  
As they walked to the doorstep, Zim's backpack malfunctioned again, sending the robot legs out, knocking  
  
Gaz over, and tearing his disguise off.  
  
Zim fell to the ground, covering his face.  
  
"What the hell is your problem, Zim?!" Gaz yelled, getting up.  
  
  
  
She looked over at Zim who had stood up, unaware of what had just happened.  
  
  
  
Gaz stared at him for a second, then rubbed her eyes.  
  
  
  
Zim quickly tossed on his disguise.  
  
Gaz opened her eyes again, "Maybe your right, I am being delusional."  
  
  
  
She rang the doorbell.  
  
An old man answered.  
  
He had yellow hair, green teeth, and was wearing pink bunny pajamas.  
  
  
  
"Hello? Hello? Hello?" he poked his cane at Zim.  
  
  
  
"Give this to poopdog." Gaz ordered.  
  
"No, I just went about an hour ago." the old man said.  
  
  
  
"No! POOPDOG!" Gaz yelled.  
  
"Would you like some chocolate?" the old man put a box in Zim's face.  
  
  
  
Zim reached for the little brown bar, but Gaz smacked his hand, "No, Zim! Don't eat that! It's a  
  
laxitive.See?" She pointed to the side of the box.  
  
"Oooh! Girl scout cookies! This takes me back to the day with the little meat snaps and count coco fang  
  
cookie bars. Did I ever tell you about the time I bought a raisinpoop cookie? It was--"  
  
  
  
"Look! Just give this letter to Poopdog!" Gaz handed the old guy the letter.  
  
"Thank you little boy. I just love frozen armpits, don't you?"  
  
  
  
Gaz growled and shoved the guy inside and grabbed Zim's arm, "C'mon, or we'll miss the next train."  
  
They took the subway home and Zim offered to walk Gaz home once more.  
  
  
  
"Hey, Gaz? What's a 'laxative?'" Zim asked.  
  
"It makes you poop, I can't believe you didn't know that. Sometimes I wonder if you're human."  
  
Zim started sweating again, "It had slipped my mind, I just needed a reminder."  
  
"Oh."  
  
When they reached the Membrane home, Zim hugged Gaz and walked home.  
  
  
  
Gaz sighed and went inside.  
  
Dib was waiting for her, "Hello Gaz. Where have you been?"  
  
  
  
"Where do you think?" Gaz closed the door.  
  
"I don't know...why don't you explain? Weren't we supposed to to dad's work?"  
  
"I did. He only wanted me to deliver some dumb note to some old guy."  
  
  
  
"And you left without me? Alone?" Dib asked slyly.  
  
  
  
"Yeah, so? I go out alone all the time in case you haven't noticed."  
  
  
  
"I heard you went with Zim." Dib got up from the chair.  
  
  
  
"So what if I did? What are you gonna do about it?"  
  
  
  
"I knew it! Uko wouldn't lie!"  
  
"Oh, so now you're spying on me."  
  
"No, Uko only saw you with, HIM! That stupid alien!"  
  
  
  
Gaz walked upstairs "It's none of your business. You wouldn't get up so who else would come with me?  
  
Obviously Zim wanted to go. So just be happy I made it back alive." she slammed her door shut.  
  
  
  
"HE'S OUT TO KILL YOU!" Dib yelled to her.  
  
"BE QUIET!" Gaz responded.  
  
Dib slammed his fist hard against the railing and ran out the door to Uko's.  
  
Zim had just gotten home to see his entire upstairs, trashed.  
  
  
  
"What the-"  
  
Zim went to his lab.  
  
Almost everything was smashed or broken.  
  
'No wonder I was having problems today.' Zim thought.  
  
  
  
He searched through all of the rubbage to see Gir's little robot body lying lifelessly upon the floor.  
  
Zim picked him up and looked around for something, anything at all worth using.  
  
There in Sector 5 was his voot runner, unharmed and stable.  
  
  
  
Zim sat in the pile of garbage using whatever tools he could to fix Gir.  
  
  
  
All had failed, so Zim put Gir in the voot runner, grabbed a torn blanket and went upstairs.  
  
He flipped over the couch and brushed the trash off, then fell asleep.  
  
  
  
He knew exactly who to blame for this. 


	3. The Dark Room

Shadowed  
  
Ch.3-The Dark Room  
  
  
  
Zim woke up to the sound of his half-broken alarm clock.  
  
  
  
He grabbed his things and painfully walked to skool.  
  
In class, Ms. Bitters gave an elongated speech on the polio disease.  
  
  
  
Zim had a horrible hospital looking pallor.  
  
Dib and Uko laughed at him quietly, passing little notes back and forth.  
  
  
  
Zim didn't glance over at them; he just stared at the blackboard.  
  
  
  
At lunch, Dib walked over to Zim's table along with Uko, "Poor little Zim. Not so high and mighty without  
  
your little lab, are we... I almost feel sorry for you."  
  
"Almost!" Uko added.  
  
The two laughed at him, but Zim refused to move, nor did he have some smart remark to back him up. Gaz  
  
walked over with her tray and tossed her food in Dib's face, "Leave him alone."  
  
"Why? You don't have a crush on him, do ya?" Dib teased.  
  
  
  
Gaz grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the wall "Leave Him Alone!"  
  
She tossed him to the ground.  
  
Dib scurried to his feet, "C'mon, Uko."  
  
"Ooooh!!! Dib's gat a girl--friend!" Sara yelled.  
  
"Ooooh! Dib's got a girl friend! Dib's got a girl friend!" the children chanted.  
  
Gaz pulled Zim's arm out to the playground.  
  
He sat on a swing next to her, not looking at her, not doing anything.  
  
  
  
"Zim?" Gaz asked.  
  
"Yes, Gaz?" his voice was hoarse, as if he hadn't been talking for a while.  
  
  
  
"What did Dib say?"  
  
"Nothing important." Zim replied.  
  
Gaz stared at him, trying to remember what she thought she saw the day before, trying to imagine Zim as an  
  
alien, but she couldn't.  
  
Dib ran outside with Uko, following the other kids, still chanting.  
  
  
  
Gaz got up and walked over to Dib.  
  
"GAZ! SAVE ME!" Dib ran behind her.  
  
She punched him hard in the face, then walked off back over to Zim.  
  
  
  
The rest of the day continued as normal.  
  
Gaz didn't see Zim at the end of the day and she was a little concerned.  
  
  
  
Zim went to his base alone, tired, and very depressed.  
  
He couldn't complete his mission without his base.  
  
He needed to find a way to get back at Dib, Dib AND Uko.  
  
  
  
A few hours had passed and Zim just laid on the couch, curled up in a little ball,  
  
He took his disguise off and packed up.  
  
There was a knock at the door.  
  
It was Gaz, but Zim couldn't here to answer.  
  
Gaz opened the door, "Zim?"  
  
She looked around at the mess, "Zim?"  
  
Gaz walked into the kitchen and there he was, staring at a silver knife.  
  
  
  
Gaz rubbed her eyes, but she was sure she wasn't seeing things this time.  
  
  
  
"Z-zim?" she walked closer, "Zim? Is that you?"  
  
Zim turned around, his red eyes almost seemed to glow, "Gaz! I, um..."  
  
  
  
"So Dib was right, you are an alien."  
  
"Gaz, I--"  
  
"You probably would have killed me...you were just using me, weren't you?"  
  
  
  
"Gaz--"  
  
"ANSWER ME!"  
  
"Yes...I was trying to get back at, Dib. But somewhere along the way, that changed."  
  
"You lied to me!" Gaz knocked one of the chairs over.  
  
"But I--I love you! Your all I have left."  
  
"Yeah,uh-huh...how do I know you aren't lying now?"  
  
"I--"  
  
"Good bye Zim." Gaz turned around and headed out the door.  
  
  
  
Zim ran over to her, turned her towards him and kissed her.  
  
  
  
Once he let off, Gaz backed away.  
  
"Gaz, I'm sorry."  
  
She looked deep into his eyes, "What's wrong with you? Don't you get it?"  
  
  
  
"What?"  
  
"I'm just as much your enemy as Dib or Uko."  
  
"But what about that drawing?"  
  
"What drawing?"  
  
"The one of you and me!"  
  
Gaz pulled a wrinkled piece of paper out of her pocket, "This one?"  
  
  
  
Zim studied the picture.  
  
He had been mistaken about her.  
  
The drawing was of him being shot by Gaz.  
  
What he thought were black and red hearts were really bullets and blood.  
  
  
  
"You, want to KILL me?" Zim asked.  
  
"I wasn't sure at first, then I thought I saw you, the real you and it changed, but then I realized that I wasn't  
  
being delusional, that you were an alien and that you had been lying to me. I can't stand that!"  
  
"GAZ! I'm sorry! Okay?! SORRY!"  
  
He had gotten her attention.  
  
"Come on! Look at me! I mean, why would you want someone like me? So green, with ugly red eyes and  
  
stupid antennas...I have nothing but my ship left."  
  
"Were you going to take over the planet?" Gaz asked.  
  
"Y-yes, but I can't anymore. Look at what happened to my base! I'm a wreck, Gaz."  
  
"Dib.... he will pay."  
  
"I think his little friend helped too."  
  
"Uko?"  
  
"Yes. And I have a feeling that I've seen her somewhere before. Gaz, you can't leave me...please." Zim  
  
begged.  
  
  
  
Gaz shook her head. "I'm sorry, Zim. I can't. You have to understand. I don't know you very well. I just, I  
  
can't...." Zim dropped to his knees.  
  
"I've got to go." Gaz went to the door.  
  
"I love you, Gaz."  
  
Gaz shook her head again and closed the door behind her.  
  
  
  
Zim fell to the floor and tears fell from his eyes.  
  
"I'll get Dib for this. Dib and Uko. And someday, I'll sit upon my throne with my queen, Gaz,  
  
and we shall laugh at our tortured human slaves. They'll see." Zim said, as though someone was there, "Gaz  
  
will be mine." Zim began hysterically laughing.  
  
He got up and went to his lab to find something of good use.  
  
  
  
Dib's time was here. 


	4. Send Away

Shadowed  
  
  
  
Ch.4-Send away  
  
  
  
Zim looked out of the half broken window and watched as Gaz disappeared, leaving him  
  
alone.  
  
Zim got up and went outside to follow her, not even caring to put on his disguise.  
  
Gaz continued home, unaware of Zim behind her.  
  
Then, Gaz fell over and Zim thought it was from the heat.  
  
It was quite hot out today.  
  
He ran over and picked her up, bringing her back to his lab.  
  
She felt awfully cold for fainting, and her heart kept stopping every now and then.  
  
But then it it hit him, his laboratory was annihilated, there was nothing down there unless  
  
he were to hotwire the computyer system to run a scan on Gaz.  
  
It probibly wouldn't work, but he had to try.  
  
Zim laid Gaz upon the seat of the voot runner and crawed behind the computer.  
  
He picked up a few wires and began to work, "Okay, red wire," he said to himself, ", to  
  
blue wire."  
  
The lights in the lab began to flicker.  
  
"Alright then, green wire to yellow wire." the upstairs' electronic equipment turned on.  
  
"Yellow wire to, eh, to blue wire."  
  
"System, engaging, on." the computer said.  
  
"Exellent," Zim crawled out, "Computer, run a scan on Gaz. I want every last detail."  
  
"Processing...Processing....scan complete. Subject: Gaz, infected with virus."  
  
"Virus?! Computer, are there any cures for this 'virus?'"  
  
"Searching...searching...no found cure."  
  
"NO FOUND CURE?!!!!"  
  
"Overload, overload...alert.....system will now shut down."  
  
The lights dimmed.  
  
"Computer?" Zim glanced over at Gaz, "The equipment room! I should have something  
  
there! It's certainly well hidden, hard to find. I'll just get what I need, cure Gaz, then try to  
  
fix Gir if it's possible."  
  
Zim scurried to the equipment room and opened the vault.  
  
It was trashed.  
  
"WHAT! But how could they have found this? Only irkens know where it is! Luck. Pure  
  
luck, and that human will pay, not only will his sister die, but I will make sure to send  
  
him to hell."  
  
Zim looked around and spoted a broken heart monitor.  
  
With a couple of hits it should work just fine.  
  
He snatched it and ran back to Gaz, and hooked her to the monitor.  
  
Her heart was really weak.  
  
Zim figured that it was from the toxins in the house, since dangerous chemicals were  
  
unleashed that Zim was already used to.  
  
He watched her carefully, the monitor redaing that her heartbeat went flat every so often.  
  
But the half damaged monitor was only acting up and Zim had to hit it until it worked  
  
again.  
  
"Gaz, don't die on me. I still need you." He touched the side of her face, " I love you."  
  
The monitor went flat again.  
  
Zim hit repeatively until he checked Gaz's pulse.  
  
Her heart had stopped beating.  
  
"Gaz?" Zim said softly, "I-I'm sorry."  
  
There was a crash from upstairs, "Oh, wonderful. I hope that's the humans here to take  
  
me away and hopefully they'll kill me."  
  
The teleporter flashed and the shadow moved closer.  
  
Sweat rolled down his forehead and he turned away from Gaz to see Uko standing next to  
  
him.  
  
"YOU!" Zim yelled.  
  
"What did you do, Zim? Try to experiment on Gaz?" Uko accused.  
  
"You horrid human! This is all the fault of you and that stink thing DIB!" Zim stood up.  
  
"What'd I do?" Uko asked.  
  
"You recked my labs, destroyed the only property I have, and you killed Gaz!" Zim  
  
yelled.  
  
"I killed Gaz?"  
  
"You ruined my base which contains the only items that may have been able to save her  
  
you little wench!" Zim knocked her into the wall.  
  
Uko pushed him to the floor, " I didn't touch your precious lab!"  
  
"Then how'd you know how to find me?"  
  
"I, the machine was sticking up so I stepped in."  
  
"Uh-huh, yeah,. But that doesn't fix what has happened to Gaz."  
  
"I can help."  
  
"How? She's long gone." Zim sighed.  
  
"Zim, I can help! Will you listen! I CAN HELP! Trust me."  
  
"No! You haven't any idea, human, how medical science works!"  
  
Uko growled, "Will you get this through your thick, arrogant infiltrated skull! What other  
  
choice do you have?"  
  
Zim glared at her, "Fine."  
  
"Stand back." Uko told him.  
  
"Why?" Zim inquired.  
  
"Just do it!" Uko yelled.  
  
Zim backed away from Gaz's side and curiously watched Uko .  
  
She began to glow and the next thing Zim remembered was waking up to see Gaz watching him in the living room of her house.  
  
"Gaz?" Zim said scratchfully.  
  
"Yeah..you okay?" she asked.  
  
"I'm fine. just fine." He reached up to touch her face but Gaz stood up and got his disguise out.  
  
"I found this in your lab. Thought you'd need it." She said.  
  
"Thank you ." Zim stood up, " I guess I should go now." He went over to the door.  
  
"Zim? I was thinking and maybe we could go out sometime." Gaz suggested.  
  
"Gaz, I don't-" he stopped, "Okay. I shall see you tomorrow then?"  
  
Gaz nodded.  
  
Zim opened the door and left.  
  
Gaz stared at the door and sighed.  
  
Maybe she'd feel better about Zim in the morning. 


	5. Break In

Shadowed  
  
Chapter 5-Break In  
  
Zim tossed open the door to his base and slammed it shut.  
  
He dragged himself down to his lab and continued through the rubble, still searching for  
  
something to fix GIR with.  
  
He picked up a screwdriver and tightened the loose bolts in Gir's head. He failed again.  
  
Through his rage, he flinged the little robot into the wall and stared at it.  
  
Gir's eyes glared bright red and he hopped up and looked around as his eyes turned blue again, "OOOOH! Look it all the toys! EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!" Gir jumped into the garbage, grabbed two parts of Zim's computer, and started pretending as though they were dolls, smashing them together, "EEEEEE HEEEEEEE HEEEEEEEEE!  
  
"Gir?" Zim asked.  
  
"LOOKY!!!" Gir squeaked.  
  
"GIR!" Zim yelled.  
  
"Wha-?" Gir said in confusion.  
  
"Can't you see what has happened?" Zim questioned.  
  
"Santa came!" Gir answered.  
  
"NO! That retched human and his stink friend destroyed MY base!" Zim screamed.  
  
"So? He left presents!" Gir continued to smash the pieces together.  
  
Zim grabbed the pieces," No Gir, not presents. This, Gir, is a piece of the base that the human tore off. " Zim said calmly.  
  
"Yeah, so?"Gir said.  
  
Zim growled," We must find and destroy them! Understand?" "I do." Gir squeaked.  
  
"You don't really, do you?" Zim asked.  
  
"Yes.wait a minute.no." Gir said in confusion.  
  
Zim shook his head, "Gir, stay here. Why don't you clean up this.horrible filth place while I'm gone."  
  
"Okie-dokie!" Gir ran off.  
  
Zim threw on his disguise and headed towards Dib's house.  
  
He peered into the window and looked about the lit up living room.  
  
Dib and Uko were sitting on the couch, talking about.something.  
  
Zim couldn't hear, but saw Uko giggling.  
  
He pulled out one of the one usable laser guns he had found and aimed into the window.  
  
Then he glanced over to the floor.  
  
There, lying on the floor drawing and coloring pictures, was Gaz.  
  
"Dammit. I can't annihilate this house with her in it!" Zim said to himself. He watched inside, almost stalkingly, then saw Dib say something to Gaz and saw him and Uko get up and walk towards the door.  
  
Zim ducked in the bushes.  
  
Dib and Uko walked through the doorway talking about useless information Zim didn't care to listen to. He got up and before he went to follow them, he went over to the house door and knocked.  
  
He missed her a little and he was a bit hungry, considering he had no food to eat at his base.  
  
Gaz got up and opened the door. "Hello, Gaz." Zim said. "Zi-what are you doing here and what happened to your disguise?" "I, um-it got all scratched."  
  
"Dib'll be back in a few minutes, you know." Gaz reminded. "I-I know, I just.where is the human going?"  
  
"To walk Uko home. Why? Are you going to hunt him down or something?" Gaz asked jokingly.  
  
"No! Of course not..I , um, can I come in?" Zim nervously asked her. "Is that a gun behind your back?" she questioned him.  
  
He tossed the gun into the bushes, "N-No! So can I come in?"  
  
"I, I suppose so." Gaz opened the door a little more, allowing Zim to enter.  
  
Gaz went into the kitchen and opened the fridge, "Are you hungry?" she asked, as if she knew what Zim was thinking.  
  
"Um, yes." Zim replied, not wanting to make it seem like he was helpless.  
  
  
  
Gaz pulled out two sodas and some leftover pizza and waltzed into the living room, "I thought so." She handed him a soda and sat next to him on the couch, "So why are you here?"  
  
"I was, uh, just in the neighborhood, and I, um, thought I'd drop by and, uh, see how you were doing." He tried to convince.  
  
"Right after Dib had just left? C'mon, Zim, I'm not THAT stupid."  
  
"Well, I-" Zim started, "No, I just, I kinda wanted to see you again. Besides, the Dib worm ruined all of the food I could actually consume."  
  
"So you were hungry. I sort of figured that." Gaz laughed a little.  
  
"I, uh-" Zim looked a bit embarrassed.  
  
"It's okay, Zim. Don't worry about it." She shifted the pizza box towards him, "Here, it isn't very nutritious, but it's food."  
  
Zim looked over to the pizza, then to Gaz, and carefully picked up a slice and took a bite.  
  
It wasn't to bad, Zim sort of liked it.  
  
"Well, is it anything like your 'irken food?'" she asked.  
  
Zim nodded, "It's.okay."  
  
Gaz slightly smiled, "Good."  
  
The doorknob started to move and Gaz turned her attention to the hatchway.  
  
  
  
She grabbed Zim's arm and started to pull him up the stairs.  
  
She pushed him into her room, "Get out of here!"  
  
Zim nodded.  
  
Gaz ran down the steps and back into the living room.  
  
"Where'd you go?" Dib asked her, coming out of the kitchen with a handful of crackers.  
  
"Upstairs." She replied.  
  
"Who were you talking to?" he questioned her.  
  
"No one, I just thought I heard something." She continued to draw and color as before.  
  
Dib shook his head, "Whatever."  
  
~***~  
  
Zim climbed down the side of the house, grabbed his gun from the bushes, and ran in the direction he saw Uko and Dib going, 'I'm never gonna find her. There's over a thousand houses on this street.' He thought.  
  
Something on the ground caught his eye.  
  
It was cookie crumbs, and cookies were Uko's favorite, considering on what she had told the Dib creature.  
  
"This just might work." Zim said to himself, following the particles.  
  
When Zim finally ran out of crumbs and out of air, he came to the culdisack where his house lied.  
  
Two houses down from his house was where the cookies ended, and at a sky blue house with two gray, pointy-like roofs and enormous windows tinted so darkly, you couldn't see inside.  
  
Zim grinned and went home to prepare.  
  
  
  
  
  
Midnight.  
  
Zim had been watching over the house as some sort of determined demon-type figure, ste on destruction of the beings inside.  
  
He quickly left the house after Gir fell asleep and snuck over.  
  
He kicked open the door.  
  
Uko was reading a comic book and looked up at the door, "Zim?"  
  
He didn't respond, he only pulled out a laser gun and pointed it at her.  
  
  
  
She hopped up and tried to run away.  
  
Zim shot at her, barely missing.  
  
The laser had paralyzed her right arm.  
  
Zim jumped over to the couch and Uko ran up the stairs and locked herself in her room.  
  
Zim intendively shot open every door her came to.  
  
Uko leaned against her door, panting, until she saw a baseball bat.  
  
He shot at her door, causing Uko to scream.  
  
Zim knocked the entry open and Uko skidded over and grabbed the bat, holding it up as a weapon.  
  
Zim laughed at her, "Oh, really, Uko, think. Do you actually believe that human play thing can hurt m-"  
  
She swung the bat, hitting his jaw hard enough to make it bleed.  
  
Zim narrowed his eyes, "Okay, stink thing, that's it! No one hits Zim and gets away with it!"  
  
Zim walked closer to her and pulled the bat from her hand, throwing it into the side of her room.  
  
He pounced on her, sending her flying to the floor.  
  
Pinning her down, he said "Today, you die, you lying, putrid bitch!"  
  
Uko tried to escape, but to no avail, she kicked him hard in the, ahem.  
  
  
  
Zim released her and fell to his knees.  
  
Uko got up and grabbed the gun from him, holding it to his head, "Do you surrender?"  
  
Zim raised his hands up in abdication.  
  
Uko smiled and put the gun to her side.  
  
Zim kicked her legs, pulled her down and retrieved the gun.  
  
"And NO ONE makes Zim surrender!" Zim held the gun to her head.  
  
"Please don't kill me, Zim! I didn't do anything to you!" she begged.  
  
He spit in her face, "You lie! YOU LIE! You wrecked my base, ruined my ship, and nearly diffused my robot slave, horrible wench!"  
  
"I DID NOT!" she screeched.  
  
"LIAR! Admit it or I'll kill you!" Zim threatened.  
  
"Okay! Okay. Dib was mad because you were with Gaz, so I thought of a revenge plan to get back at you. I told him we should destroy your so called 'base' but I was only kidding. He wasn't, so I thought it'd be fun, wrecking your house and all. Then things got a little out of control and we started tipping things over, snapping pictures, and hitting things with bats and stuff, okay! I didn't mean for that bad of damage to happen and I'm sorry, Zim! S-O-R-R-Y! Sorry, alright?"  
  
Zim put on a sympathetic look, "Aw, it's okay, Uko."  
  
"You said if I told you the truth, you'd let me go, right?" she asked with tear filled eyes.  
  
"I did say that, didn't I?" Zim reminded himself, lowering the gun.  
  
Uko sighed in relief.  
  
Zim pointed the gun back to her forehead, "I'm gonna kill you anyway!"  
  
Uko frowned and slapped the gun from his hand, then ran for the door.  
  
Zim grabbed the bat and swung it into her head.  
  
She fell to the floor and tried to get up, but Zim had grabbed her.  
  
He walked with her over his head, and tossed her out of the window. 


	6. Terminal

Shadowed  
  
Chapter 6- Terminal  
  
Dib had called Uko several times the morning after Zim's Break In, completely unaware of what had happened.  
  
He just figured she was sleeping in, so he decided to go over and wake her up.  
  
He had just received the worst thing that has ever happened.  
  
His lab top malfunctioned and he couldn't get the pictures that he had taken inside of Zim's base, on disk.  
  
He was hoping that he could use her computer if she would be so kind, since Gaz refused.  
  
Dib scurried up the sidewalk and almost completely missed what was lying on the sidewalk.  
  
Dib froze and looked up at Uko's window.  
  
It was completely shattered.  
  
He lifted Uko's slottered body over and studied it.  
  
Blood was tearing halfway down her face and a massive incision in the side of her skull.  
  
There were a few pieces of glass wedged in her skin and a large amount of blood pouring from her arm, which was battered and wounded.  
  
Dib's face turned red with rage, "Zim." he whispered.  
  
He checked her pulse.  
  
After everything the poor girl has been through, she was still alive.  
  
He gently lifted her body and carried her down the street to the nearest hospital as fast as his legs would move with the extra weight of Uko.  
  
Her eyes flickered open, "D-Dib?"  
  
He stopped, "Uko? Uko! Hey, can you tell me who did this to you? Uko?"  
  
"I-I" she passed out again.  
  
Dib, again, checked her pulse to make sure she was still okay.  
  
She was.  
  
He picked her up and kept running, though he was being eyed by most everyone he passed, or even saw him.  
  
He shook his head and kept his pace up until the hospital came into sight.  
  
  
  
Dib ran through the sliding doors, almost forging them open with his foot.  
  
  
  
"HELP! SOMEONE HAS TO HELP ME!" Dib yelled.  
  
A squad of doctors and nurses made their way over and took Uko, in a sense of force, from Dib's grasp.  
  
"Wait!" Dib yelled after them.  
  
"Young man, you need to fill these papers out." a secretary handed him a clipboard.  
  
"But I wanna go with Uko!" he complained.  
  
"I'm sorry, young man, but that would be out of my reach. No one is aloud into the ER for 24 hours unless a doctors consent is given."  
  
"24 hours? Wait, the ER?" Dib questioned.  
  
"That would mean emergency room, young man."  
  
"I know that, but is it this serious?" he asked.  
  
"I would believe so." her voice began to sound bored.  
  
Dib sighed and sat down with the papers and pen, "Let's see, name of the patient...Uko Anirkent, age...12, weight...how should I know? It can't be too much since I carried her all the way here, I guess it'd be about 80 pounds, hair color...blonde, eye color...gray, birthday...uh, I think she said December 15th, favorite color/food/drink/music? Why does the hospital need to know that?"  
  
"For special purposes." the secretary answered, "As in 'her last hours.'"  
  
  
  
Dib gulped, "I hope it doesn't come down to that... where was I again, oh yeah...red/cookies/ uh, bubble gum brain freezies/ and dance? How should I know that either? Let's see...any medical difficulties in the past... none, allergies to specific medicines...I don't believe so, okay, name of parent/guardian/specified caretaker... she never said anything about her parents, I don't think she's adopted, and I guess I'd be the caretaker...After all, I did bring her here... so Dib Membrane, age...12, weight...none of your business, and credit card number? What the hell is this, a big scam for your money and private information? Why would they need MY weight? And I'm not giving out MY credit card number!"  
  
"Suit yourself, kid." the secretary snapped.  
  
"Oh, what a comforting hospital." Dib sighed sarcastically.  
  
He waited there for over 18 hours.  
  
The nurses weren't even kind enough to feed him, so he pulled out the spare 10's he had in his boot and went over to the vending machine.  
  
Another 3 hours and Dib still waited.  
  
He wanted to be there for whatever bad OR good news came.  
  
He wanted to assure himself of Uko's safety.  
  
  
  
  
  
~***~  
  
Gaz was walking home from skool wondering the whereabouts of her missing brother.  
  
Zim saw her walking off alone and went after her, "Hello, Gaz."  
  
"Hi, Zim." she replied.  
  
"So, uh, where's the Dib feen?" he asked.  
  
"I dunno." Gaz answered.  
  
"So you'll be alone tonight?" Zim dared to ask.  
  
"Yeah, so? What are you getting at." she questioned him.  
  
Zim pulled a flyer from his back pack and handed it to her.  
  
It was an ad for a carnival that was a one night only thing.  
  
"Zim, haven't we discussed the you-and-me thing?" she reminded.  
  
"Yes, but I--" Zim began.  
  
"No, Zim. I'm sorry, but I can't go with you tonight, or ever for that matter." she stated.  
  
"Gaz, please? Just one more chance? If you start having a bad time, we'll leave. Please?" he begged.  
  
Gaz rolled her eyes, "Fine. Just ONE MORE chance."  
  
"Very well then." Zim said, "Shall I accompany you to your home?"  
  
Gaz giggled at his way of speech, "Sure."  
  
Gaz held out her arm and laced it through his.  
  
He shook her head.  
  
Gaz started skipping.  
  
"Gaz? What are you doing?" Zim asked.  
  
"C'mon, Zim! Skip with me!"  
  
"Skip?"  
  
"Yeah! You have to know how."  
  
"I don't think I--" Zim started.  
  
"C'MON!" she demanded, "If I have to go out with you, then I'm gonna make it the most embarrassing thing you've ever experienced!"  
  
He shook his head again, "Alright, I shall. But I won't like it."  
  
The two started skipping down the street, all eyes on them.  
  
"Gaz, people are staring at us!" Zim told her.  
  
"So? Let 'em stare!" Gaz said.  
  
"GAZ! Have you gone insane?" he asked her.  
  
"YES! 'Still love me, now?"  
  
"There's nothing you could do to make me quit loving you...but this, this, MADNESS isn't you!"  
  
"Sure it is! I'm only being me happy, feminine self!"  
  
Zim shook his head, once more.  
  
When they arrived at her house, Zim jumped in the door, "I never hope to do ANYTHING like that again!"  
  
Gaz nodded, "Don't worry, Zim, they'll be plenty more skipping involved until you can honestly say you don't love me."  
  
"Okay, I don't love you." Zim said.  
  
"I said HONESTLY, Zim. You didn't mean that."  
  
"I did. Gaz, I do NOT love you anymore." he repeated, looking her dead in the eye.  
  
"Really? I thought you said there was nothing that I could do to make you stop loving me?"  
  
"There isn't anything YOU can do, it was the crowd of mimicking HUMANS that did it. I think I should go. No carnival tonight or EVER for that matter, okay?" Zim went over to the door and pretended to leave.  
  
"Zim, wait." Gaz walked over to him.  
  
Zim grinned hopefully and turned around to face her.  
  
She looked extremely upset.  
  
Zim frowned.  
  
Gaz held up the flyer and smiled, "You forgot your paper."  
  
Zim grabbed the flyer and hugged her.  
  
"I still wanna take you out tonight." Zim told her.  
  
Gaz growled, "Alright, fine. But I suggest we leave now, considering that Dib'll show up and make so many questions to stall us with, we'll miss the whole thing. I'll be right down." Gaz ran up to her room.  
  
When she returned with her jacket at hand and about 6 twenties, they set off for the fair grounds.  
  
Of course, it took about a hour to get there by train and about two hours by bus, since it was all the way in the rural areas, Zim suggested that they go by his ship.  
  
So they did.  
  
When they arrived, Zim bought their tickets, and just about everything else.  
  
He and Gaz sat on a bench, eating cotton candy.  
  
"So, what do you wanna do first?" Zim asked.  
  
She looked around the fair grounds, then pointed to a giant ring, "Let's go on that ride!"  
  
Zim turned around to see the huge loop, "Very well then."  
  
Gaz pulled his arm over to the short line.  
  
Once Zim got a look at how the ride worked, he sort of backed away.  
  
It was nothing but the thrill of being stuck upside-down for seconds just to come hurling back down to Earth again over and over until you puked your guts out.  
  
"Um, Gaz," he choked, "I'm not so sure this is the best ride for us to be going on."  
  
"Of course it isn't!" she agreed.  
  
Zim sighed in relief.  
  
"That's why we're going on it in the first place!" she finally said.  
  
Zim gulped, 'This girl is trying to kill me!' he thought, "Um, Gaz, I have to use the bathroom."  
  
"No way Zim, we're next in line!" Gaz said.  
  
"You don't understand! I really, really, REALLY got to go! NOW!" he panicked.  
  
"NEXT!" the large, muscular operator guy said.  
  
Gaz pulled Zim's arm.  
  
"Whoa! Whoa, little kids, yous is not big enough to ride this. NEXT!" the machine guy told them.  
  
"WHY?!" Gaz exclaimed.  
  
He pointed to the height chart's thick red line, "Yous gotta be THIS tall to ride."  
  
Gaz looked back at Zim and depressively sighed, "C'mon, Zim."  
  
Zim stopped her, "Do you really want to go on this ride, Gaz?"  
  
"Yeah! I've always never been big enough to go on it. I've always wanted to. But we can't, so- "  
  
Zim pulled her back up to the machine operator.  
  
"WOAH! What did I tell you kiddies! Yous can't go on this ride. Why don't you scurry on over to that little dragon over there." He pointed.  
  
"I don't think so! We're sick of dragons! I wanna go on THIS ride!" Gaz yelled.  
  
"You heard her!" Zim defended.  
  
"Hey hey hey! Yous kids is TO little to-"  
  
"SILENCE, putrid ride slave!" he jumped up and grabbed the man by the collar, "Either you let us on this THING, or I shall see to it that you never live another horrid day of your stink life!" Zim threatened, "Now, as you were saying?"  
  
The guard moved from the couple's way and took the very first seat.  
  
Gaz pulled down the giant, padded bar over her and Zim.  
  
"Gaz, is this ride, uh, safe?" Zim nervously asked.  
  
"I would think so, of course, we aren't exactly 'preferred height.'" Gaz smiled at him, "Thanks."  
  
As the ride began to start, Zim grabbed Gaz's hand and squeezed it tight.  
  
Gaz shook her head.  
  
Zim kept his eyes shut tight, squeezing Gaz's hand harder at each point they went upside-down.  
  
He hated the fact that the ride made him feel as though he would fall out.  
  
It scared him out of his mind.  
  
However, Gaz seemed to enjoy it.  
  
Every few seconds he would peek out to make sure she was still at his side, considering he had squeezed her hand so hard he couldn't feel it.  
  
She would just look at him and smile, so Zim would close his eyes again and hope he would make it out alive.  
  
  
  
The ride stopped at the top with Zim to look at nothing but the ground below.  
  
He began to get nauseous as the blood rushed to his head.  
  
Looking over to Gaz, who seemed to be slipping out, he let go of the bar he had practically been clinging to and wrapped his arms around her tightly.  
  
"Zim, you're gonna fall out, you know." Gaz said.  
  
Zim's spider legs flung out and latched to the bar in front of them.  
  
The ride slowly shifted back down to earth and Zim retracted the spider legs, sitting there latched to Gaz, shaking.  
  
  
  
They were the last ones off and Zim could barely walk "Nothing, I mean NOTHING on Irk could have prepared me for, THAT!"  
  
  
  
"Geez, Zim, if the ride scared you so much, why didn't you tell me? We could have went over to the safe little dragon ride." Gaz told him.  
  
"I think I'm a little to old for such things." He said.  
  
"Yeah." Gaz laughed, "But all and all, that ride could have been scarier. I've been on better play ground equipment that scared the hell out of me."  
  
"You're just saying that to make me feel better." Zim said.  
  
'But it's working!" Gaz told him.  
  
Zim nodded, "Now what?"  
  
"I dunno. Let's go play some games."  
  
Zim agreed and took Gaz over to a booth.  
  
Gaz handed the big, ugly man a five and started throwing rings at the bottles.  
  
Zim studied the game.  
  
But every time she threw, she missed.  
  
After wasting twenty dollars, Gaz got extremely agitated.  
  
Zim stared at the bottles and then looked at the rings as they flew across the air.  
  
On Gaz's last two rings before she would give up, Zim stopped her, "Wait." He whispered to her, "This game is rigged. You can't win."  
  
"You can win, there's always a trick." Gaz explained.  
  
Zim grabbed the rings from Gaz, then tossed them directly onto the bottles.  
  
"How'd you do that?" she asked.  
  
"Invaders' training, we learned this in the basics." Zim interpreted.  
  
"They taught you how to win carnival games?" Gaz asked.  
  
"It isn't exactly 'carnival games', it's war. We are taught how to throw bombs that are like rings, the enemy, or the milk bottle, would be our target."  
  
"Teach me how!" Gaz demanded.  
  
Zim showed her the ring and tried to tell her in simple words what the Invaders' Instructor told him.  
  
Gaz didn't quite understand, so Zim just went through and won a lot of prizes for Gaz, and the ones she didn't want, he would give to Gir.  
  
Gaz was at the up most happiest day of her life.  
  
  
  
  
  
~***~  
  
  
  
Dib un patiently waited to gain access to Uko's room.  
  
The doctors came in and directed him.  
  
He opened the door and sat in the chair beside her.  
  
The doctor stood behind him, "We couldn't find anything on Miss Anirkent, no medical reports, no parents, not even a birth certificate that showed she even existed. In fact, no blood samples from anyone even slightly matched hers. How long have you known her?"  
  
"For about a month now." Dib replied.  
  
"Uh-huh, and do you know who her parents are?"  
  
"'Haven't seen 'em." Dib said.  
  
"Hmmm. Well, I'll leave you to your visit. She'll need to be in the ER by tomorrow morning, for, um, medical treatment."  
  
"WAIT! Tomorrow? You mean she can't leave tonight?" Dib stood up.  
  
"I'm sorry, but under the circumstances, the patient-"  
  
"Her name's Uko!" Dib told him.  
  
"Right.Uko, is in no condition to be leaving the premises. Good night to you." The doctor left the room, closing the door behind him.  
  
Dib went over and sat on the side of Uko's bed, "Uko? Uko. Are you awake?"  
  
Uko's eyebrows tightened.  
  
"Uko!" Dib called.  
  
She opened her eyes, "D-Dib?"  
  
"Uko! Are you okay?" he asked.  
  
She sat up, "Yeah, fine. I just broke my leg and sprained my shoulder. The doctors said the wounds weren't fatal, why do you ask?"  
  
"The doctors said something about taking you back to the ER tomorrow morning." Dib told her.  
  
"WHAT!" she jumped.  
  
"Why? What is it?" Dib inquired.  
  
"I, um, saw. a guy. Someone, he looked very suspicious. Dib, I don't know what's-"  
  
"Wait a sec, what did they guy look like?" Dib questioned.  
  
"Well, he was talking to the doctor and he had black hair and wore a trench coat, kinda like yours and he-"  
  
"Bill." Dib stated.  
  
"Bill? Who's that?" Uko asked.  
  
"He's with the Federal Bureau of Investigation." Dib explained.  
  
"Oooh! An FBI agent! Neato! What's he doin' here though, Dib?"  
  
"Uko, this is nothing to be excited about. That 'Bill' person has caused nothing but trouble for me and has done nothing but mock the fields of paranormal investigation. I think he's after you."  
  
"Wha-why? What'd I do?" Uko pulled the sheet up over herself.  
  
"I don't think you did anything. I think that the doctors called him down because they couldn't find your parents." Dib continued.  
  
"P-Parents? I have parents! I, um, just don't know who they are." Uko blushed.  
  
"You don't know who they are?"  
  
Uko shook her head, her expression extremely guilty.  
  
"Okay, we'll discuss this later. For now, I gotta get you outta here and soon." Dib went over to the closet and started tearing through the little hospital dresses.  
  
"But, why?" Uko hopped over to him, grabbing his shoulder before she lost her balance.  
  
"Because, if I leave you here, that FBI guy will want to experiment on you. I refuse to let that happen." Dib pulled out her blood stained trench coat, her little 'X' shirt and her baggy black pants, "Here, hurry up and change."  
  
"Turn around!" Uko demanded.  
  
Dib looked out Uko's room window and peered at the by passing doctorial figures.  
  
Uko hopped over to him, "Okay! Let's go!"  
  
"Wait! We need to get out of here ALIVE. If you just waltz on out there, do you believe that those monsters will let you leave with out any says in 'no?'"  
  
"Sure! Why not!" Uko said.  
  
Dib shook his head and pulled out one of those laundry baskets on wheels, "Hurry! Get in!"  
  
Uko jumped in.  
  
The doctor came in and Dib was prepared with a medicine table.  
  
He slammed it over the doctor's head and stole his uniform.  
  
He rolled the basket down the hall and carefully out of the hospital.  
  
Bill was sitting in his car, watching.  
  
Dib tore the uniform off, "I think it's safe now. You can come out."  
  
Uko popped her head out and looked around.  
  
Bill jumped out of his car, "HEY! Stop right there!"  
  
Dib looked around for an escape, then saw the downhill.  
  
He pushed the cart fast down the hill and jumped in.  
  
"DIB! Are you crazy?" Uko screamed.  
  
"You won't get away!" Bill yelled, speeding down the street.  
  
"For now, yes!" Dib pulled a pole out from the cart's side and began using it as a paddle against the sidewalk, "Hold on!"  
  
Uko grasped the cart and screamed.  
  
Bill floored it and skidded into the street below, into the path of the speeding laundry cart.  
  
Dib tilted to the left, causing the cart to turn down a steeper, longer hill, almost tipping the little basket over.  
  
Bill was still gaining on them, and fast.  
  
Dib slanted to the right, down a dark, narrow alley.  
  
Bill passed the little back street, continuing to speed down the avenue.  
  
Dib tilted over again into a street and kept their pace down the precipitous road.  
  
They both looked back to see if the Bill thing was still following.  
  
When they saw no cars in sight, Dib hugged Uko in rejoice.  
  
She peered over his shoulder, all smiles.  
  
But her smile quickly turned into a frown, "EEEE! Dib! Look out!"  
  
Dib looked to the front and saw an extremely crowded terrace.  
  
He quickly and almost barely turned the cart down into another alley.  
  
"DIB! Look ou-" Uko was cut off by the cart's immediate crash into a dumpster.  
  
Dib straggled to his feet and Uko sat up, pulling a half-rotten banana peel from her hair.  
  
"Are you okay?" Dib asked in complete anxiety.  
  
Uko stood on her good leg, "That.was.GREAT!"  
  
"Are you deranged? We could have been killed!" Dib yelled.  
  
"I'm perfectly sane, Dib. But that was so-much fun! Wooo! Let's do that again sometime!" Uko smirked.  
  
Dib grimaced, "Uko, let's just get out of here."  
  
"Yeah. I'm starving. That hospital food is so-repulsive." She put her arm around Dib, using him as her crutched, "Maybe we should have stolen a wheelchair." She suggested.  
  
"Nah, I carried you 3 miles to the hospital, I can carry you back, eh, um, if I can find my way home."  
  
"You mean to tell me we're lost?" she asked.  
  
"Um, no. Let's see.the hospital was only up the road, I'll just take the back way passed the dispensary and then get on the right street and we should be back."  
  
"Good, I can't wait to get back home." Uko sighed happily.  
  
Dib's eyes widened, "NO! If you go back to your house, then Zim'll surely try to murder you and next time, he might just be successful."  
  
"Well, I can't stay at your place. I need to clean up my house and I still have that paper to finish for Ms. Bitters on my computer and I still need groceries and-"  
  
"Wait, you buy your own groceries? How? You don't have a job!"  
  
"Heh heh, how would you know?"  
  
Dib narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Okay, um, my, uh, mom pays for it all?" Uko replied guiltily.  
  
"Uh-huh, how come your mom and dad don't buy them then?"  
  
"My mom's, a, um, business woman!"  
  
"Ah-Ha! You said you didn't know who your biological parents are!"  
  
"I, um."  
  
  
  
"Uko, why are you lying to me? There's nothing you can't tell me, ya know."  
  
"Y-You wouldn't understand."  
  
"Try me."  
  
  
  
"Dib, I really can't."  
  
Dib growled, "Why? You can't or you just don't want to!?"  
  
"BOTH! Okay? Now let's just drop it!" She screamed at him.  
  
Dib hadn't seen her so upset before, but he figured that whatever it was, it could wait, "I was only trying to figure out why that agent was after you. Sorry."  
  
"Don't be. I just wanna go home."  
  
"I guess I'll stay the night to make sure that Zim doesn't try anything." He lifted her up on his shoulders.  
  
"No, I don't think so. He's to busy being obsessed with your sister. Besides. he took her out to that carnival tonight."  
  
"Oh.WAIT! How'd you know that?"  
  
"It's a one night thing. You don't think he'd really miss this kind of opportunity with Gaz, do ya?"  
  
"Uko.really."  
  
"Hee hee, lucky guess, I suppose. But if you wanna stay over tonight, I won't stop you. Just don't ask anymore questions, okay?"  
  
Dib nodded and helped her home.  
  
He had to figure out what was wrong with Uko, and soon because he might not be able to get away for the demented 'Bill' the subsequent time. 


End file.
